North East Electronics has developed a low-cost, servo-driven gantry system in the form of a kit that can be assembled on site in a matter of hours. The Osprey system forms a general-purpose production machine with the customer supplying their own base, table or tank, depending on the application.

The concept was spawned by NEE`s many years of experience as a supplier of motion and machine controllers. During this time, the company has often been asked to assist in tasks such as sizing motors and drive amplifiers, tuning servo motors, and wiring and commissioning systems. Although these tasks represent a significant part of any machine development project, NEE has found that often systems builders do not consider them from the outset.

The kit gantry is designed to take care of these tasks. The machine is pre-assembled in NEE`s Gateshead factory where it is fitted with servomotors, datum switches, and a wiring harness to link the drive components to an AMC controller housing the motion control elements such as the drive amplifiers and power supplies.

After testing, the machine is broken down and packed into four cases - one for the controller, the other three for the mechanical system. When the cases arrive at the customer`s site, the sections are re-assembled using just 16 bolts and the wiring harness and controller are hooked up. The completed machine can be running an a few hours.

NEE is supplying the Osprey machine in a range of sizes from 0.6m by 0.6m to 6.1m by 61m. Potential applications include routing and plasma, laser or water jet cutting.